


what is mine, what is yours, and what is--

by hikarimew



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Character Study, F/M, discussion of chronic illness, hordak slowly realizes he has caught Feelings, more like musings i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2020-08-11 17:49:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20157613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hikarimew/pseuds/hikarimew
Summary: Set during Season 3. As he enjoys the benefit of his new exoskeleton, Hordak plans.





	what is mine, what is yours, and what is--

It was as if Hordak could think clearly for the first time in his life. 

His mind had always been full, of strategies and commands and blueprints, but there was also that fog of pain that was always there. On good days, it lingered on the edges, never gone, but manageable, something he could work through. And worked through it he did, to Horde Prime's side, to creating the Fright Zone, to most and every day of his life.

On bad days, it took over his mind completely, as his failed body betrayed him and left him unable to properly think and focus and  _ move _ , that haze of pain filling up all the corners of his mind, and it took everything he had on a bad day just to stand still.

But this was better than a good day. His new exoskeleton worked with him, not for him. Not forcing himself to stay in position, but guiding it to properly manage itself. Completing all the lacking parts, an improvement to his form instead of hiding the flaws behind metal.

For the first time in his life, he saw just how much he'd wasted on managing himself, even on good days. And now that he could see, feel,  _ think _ more clearly his mind almost seemed ready to burst with new ideas and improvements for the Portal, now that he could actually devote more of himself to it.

And not just himself. Hordak has since learned these experiments went faster and produced better results with another pair of hands on the job, but as he enters his laboratory for the day he cannot see his lab partner anywhere. No coiling strands scattered around reaching for tools, no low but constant talking as she recorded her processes and ideas, no sounds of tinkering and improvement. Entrapta isn't here.

This will not do. He steps out and grabs the nearest soldier, the guard at his door, as one does as leader of the Horde, and demands the location of the Princess. The soldier does not know.

“Then find her, and tell her I require her presence in our lab!” and after dropping the soldier so he can scramble off and find her, Hordak heads back inside and shuts the door behind him. In front of him, Imp is grinning. It’s not until Hordak hears his own words out of the diminutive mouth, repeated to perfection as always, that it fully dawns on him what he said.

_ “our lab” _

Hordak does not do “our” and “us”. This is not the way of the Horde. The way of the Horde is to conquer and dominate and take. Not share. Not cooperate. But those were his own words, as the impish smile in front of him attests. And as he mulls over the words, pacing deeper into his laboratory, he realizes… He likes them. It sounds much like he feels today. Better than in years. Better than in his whole life. All thanks to her. Perhaps a reward was in order. A title? She had no real position in the Horde (was she technically even still a prisoner), so that would be a good start--

“Hey Hordak!”

And there she was, poking out of the vents above his head. He could see the purple glow of Emily further away, as faithful a companion as Imp was to him. “Heard you were looking for me! Sorry ‘bout that, I just popped by the kitchens for a bit. Tiny cupcake?”

There’s a tray of tiny, bite-sized cupcakes being brought out of the vents as Entrapta climbs down, and despite not really caring for the food and matter of this dimension, Hordak grabs two- One for himself, one fed to Imp, who has happily climbed onto his usual perch on his shoulders.

“Your absence has been excused. Now, I’ve gotten new ideas for expanding our portal machine,” and there it was again, that feeling of being clearer, of having more purpose, more power, a special warmth he could barely describe.

“Let’s get started.”


End file.
